press release

Have U.S. Co-ops Been Co-opted?New Website Details National Findings with Potential Multi-Million Dollar Losses in New Mexico, AloneSanta Fe, NM – There is growing concern U.S. food co-ops, including New Mexico’s own La Montañita co-op, the second largest food co-op in the country, are being increasingly controlled by a powerful national consulting group (CDS Consulting) with ties to a publicly traded corporation (United Natural Foods, Inc). Not only is this outside influence causing the co-ops to depart from core cooperative principles, it may have caused the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in the process, all while profiting the consulting group and corporation.In response to those concerns, New Mexico group, Take Back The Co-op! (TBTC), has spent the past three months pouring over data and talking to workers, vendors, and co-ops across the country, connecting the dots.The new website, TakeBackTheCoop.com, lays out those findings. Readers will have the opportunity to “follow the money.” They’ll hear the perspectives of insiders, and learn about the major players behind this.“It all started with bringing in the so-called ‘Clean Fifteen’ to our stores,” says Dorothy Finnigan, co-founder of TBTC, referring to La Montañita’s decision to introduce conventional produce. “But soon we learned that was just the tip of the iceberg. This isn’t about produce or pesticides, this is about greed. Corporate and personal greed.”TakeBackTheCoop.com calls not only for transparency and accountability, but also for concrete member-owner action by removing the board of La Montañita and replacing them with member-owners who haven’t been manipulated by the consulting group.Django Zeaman, also a co-founder of TBTC says, “CDS Consulting appears to operate a bit like Amway, with a dash of Scientology thrown in. They ‘train’ food co-op boards every month and gradually gain their trust, then they start to take over. In some cases they even install their consultants as store managers. And they consult with over 100 food co-ops across the country. It’s a national scandal and we’re just beginning to uncover it.”La Montañita Co-op first opened in 1976 with 300 members. It now has over 16,000 members and operates six stores in Albuquerque, Gallup, and Santa Fe.Take Back the Co-op! is a New Mexican group of concerned La Montañita member-owners formed in May of 2016. In three months, it has gained over 500 supporters, and anticipates sizeable, continued growth in New Mexico and nationally after the website launch.###